Do One Thing

The next time you say ‘Do one thing’, a literal translation of ‘ek kaam karo’, you know you’ve just committed an Indianism.

Linguist David Crystal would love these. He once found ten such on a 132 km stretch from Pune to Mumbai : ‘Parking inside the lawn is strictly prohibited’ , ‘Do not crisscross on the expressway’ and more such road signs in a uniquely Indian usage of English. Cnngo.com has come up with an equally entertaining “10 classic Indianisms: ‘Do the needful’ and more”. The next time you say ‘Do one thing’, a literal translation of ‘ek kaam karo’, you know you’ve just committed an Indianism. And how many times have you added ‘Please revert’ at the end of an email? You might want to know that ‘revert’ means ‘return to a former habit, practice, belief, condition’.  Other gems include ‘Order for’ and ‘Discuss about’ . For the full list, go to https://www.cnngo.com/mumbai/life/10-indianisms-652344?page=0,0.

About The Author

Pallavi Polanki